Softball: Ludlowe erases seven-run deficit, roars past McMahon

By Chris Elsberry

Updated
7:42 pm EDT, Wednesday, April 11, 2018

FAIRFIELD — After Kylee Holderied threw over 140 pitches just two days earlier against Stamford, Ludlowe coach Lou Bunosso wanted to give his top starter some rest heading into Wednesday’s game against McMahon.

Her rest lasted about two innings.

Bunosso’s starter against the Senators, Jayney Magliocco, struggled from the start, not getting out of the second inning. When Bunosso finally took her out and replaced her with Holderied, Ludlowe trailed McMahon 7-0.

Over the next 4 1/3 innings, Holderied was sensational. She allowed just one run on four hits while striking out seven as the Falcons put up crooked numbers in the second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings to erase that seven-run deficit and roll past McMahon 20-8 on Wednesday at Sturges Park.

“Kylee is a workhorse on the mound for us,” Bunosso said. “She threw a ton of pitches against Stamford on Monday and to come in relief and do what she did, I’ve got nothing but great things to say about her.”

The win was the second straight for the Falcons (2-1), more importantly, improving them to 2-0 in the FCIAC. McMahon, meanwhile, fell to 0-3 on the season and has lost 25 straight games dating back to the 2015-16 season.

“It’s tough … this was a tough one,” Sanators coach Mike Petrina said. “We get off to a hot start and we’re happy with it and we don’t fight to the end. We have to work on finishing ball games. What do we have to do to keep those first few innings rolling?”

An RBI single from Megan Stefanowicz and a two-run base hit from Alexandra Mills gave McMahon a 3-0 lead in the first. A three-run home run off the bat of Lila Young, along with an RBI single from Mills, made it 7-0.

“She’s a player,” Pertrina said of Young. “She’s everything you can ask of in a player. She swings the bat … no one works harder and I hope that work ethic rubs off on some of the other players.”

From there, however, everything changed. Holderied came in relief and shut down the Senators’ bats, and suddenly the Ludlowe bats came alive. Kylee and sister Luka Holderied scored in the second to make it 8-2; three hits and three walks in the third gave the Falcons three more runs, making it 8-5; and in the fourth, a four-spot, thanks to two walks, a hit batter, two singles and an error, gave the Falcons a 9-8 lead.

“As a young team, it was really impressive how they battled back, behind down seven runs early and staying focused and not panicking, staying patient in the box was key,” Bunosso said. “They listened to the instructions as far as hitting goes. I’m proud of the way we’re swinging the bats.”

Another four-run inning in the fifth, highlighted by a two-run homer by Ira Boci — her second in two games — and a two-run single from Kylee Holderied pushed the Falcons’ lead to 13-8. In the sixth, Ludlowe added seven more, led by a two-run homer from Caitlyn Romero and a two-run single from Michelle Bookas, to make it a 12-run lead, invoking the mercy rule.

“It’s tough,” Petrina said. “Today, I started five sophomores. We’re very young, but they’re working hard and they’re learning. We’re trying to take every negative experience and make it into positives.”

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Ludlowe’s Kylee Holderied threw 4 1/3 innings of one-run relief, striking out seven, to get the win. She also walked twice, singled, doubled, scored two runs and drove in two runs.

QUOTABLE

“I think we have a great team, everyone’s always up, we’re all friends, we’re all cheering together, having fun. That really helps. Since we’re a younger team, people don’t expect us to win or win as much against the better teams especially, but I don’t think that’s going to stop us. We want to keep growing.” — Ludlowe’s Kylee Holderied

Highlights: M — Lila Young went 4 for 4 with a home run, four RBI and two runs scored, Julia Bale had three hits and scored three runs, Megan Stefanowicz had two hits, including a double and an RBI; L — Boci went 3 for 5, including a homer, had three RBI and scored three runs, Allie Clark had three hits and scored three runs, Caitlyn Romero had two hits, including a home run, scored three runs and had four RBI.